‘Famous in Love’ Review: The Truth Bites Back

Secrets came to light and blew up several relationships on Famous in Love.

While we saw certain fights coming a mile away, “Secrets and Pies” had its share of fallouts that left us scratching our heads.

Take Cassie choosing to go back to working as a topless maid rather than be Paige’s assistant. It’s not a surprise that she didn’t want to play gopher for her best friend. But the real reason she’s suddenly mad at Paige is because she’s jealous her bestie got the part over her.

(Freeform/Michael Ansell)

It’s not that there were no hints of jealousy. I worried about this after the pilot. But over the last few episodes, Cassie’s been so supportive. Her focus has been mainly on money issues. When she lashed out at Paige, it didn’t feel earned. Or, maybe Cassie’s just that good of an actress.

I’m also not sure whose side the audience is supposed to be on. Maybe both? I leaned more toward Paige because Cassie’s attack came out of nowhere. But, at the same time, I love Cassie, and I can imagine how much that would hurt to see someone living your dream. Even someone you love.

Paige also had Rainer issues this week. After she declined Vegas, he opted to take the hint, and give her space. At least that’s what he told Jordan. In reality, Rainer came off like a spoiled brat when he blew off rehearsal, and gave his new costar the same song and dance he’d given Paige.

(Freeform/Michael Ansell)

But I can’t stay mad at Rainer either, you guys. He was hurt and he handled it badly. Who among us hasn’t been petty or spiteful at least once? He came through in the end, after Paige called him out for being the worst, and their sparkly chemistry delighted me almost as much as it did Twitch (seriously, who doesn’t love Twitch?).

Of course things are about to get more complicated for Rainer. Alan’s putting the pieces together. It turns out Nina fudged Rainer’s age—allegedly to help him later in life—but more likely so Alan wouldn’t learn the truth. I cannot wait for this confrontation. Because we know Nina’s not going down without a fight.

And she’s got several of them coming. Tangey’s not happy about being fired (understandable), and Rainer made it clear to Jordan that it was Nina’s doing. He doesn’t know why, and Tangey doesn’t know why, but Jordan does. Nina might hold all the cards, but she seems quite attached to Jordan. Things are going to get uglier.

(Freeform/Michael Ansell)

Speaking of ugly…we now have the full Jordan Wilder backstory. He killed Brandy’s mobster boyfriend because he was hitting her, and now his crew is blackmailing her. That’s why she’s stealing and blackmailing Jordan. A little over the top as far as scenarios go, but it’s a TV show, so we can let it slide.

Tangey knows part of the truth, and she’s not happy with Jordan for lying. Wait until she finds out about him and Nina. Also, she’s sort of, but not really, giving Ida another chance. She wouldn’t rehire her, but she didn’t say no when her mother offered to help her fight back against her firing. Another potential powder keg. But it’s hard to blame Tangey for being desperate.

Finally, things were going great for Alexis and Jake…for about five minutes. The studio wanted to make changes to Jake’s script. He wasn’t happy, but he agreed. Because that’s business. Then, Alexis was forced to offer a role to Rachel. Except there’s still all kinds of tension between them.

But we’re getting an even deeper glimpse into Alexis. She’s afraid to be herself because it contradicts who people think she’s supposed to be. Is there anything more relatable than that? Seriously, it makes it difficult to stay mad at her. Even though she’s about to screw Jake by agreeing to let Rachel’s friend rewrite his script.

On the bright side, at least Paige scored a win with her professor, right? At this point, the characters need to take all the wins they can get.

About the author

Mandy Treccia

Mandy Treccia has served as TVSource Magazine’s Executive Editor since 2016, formerly as Editorial Director from 2012-2016. She is an avid TV watcher and card carrying fan girl prone to sudden bursts of emotion, ranging from extreme excitement to blind rage during her favorite shows and has on more than once occasion considered having a paper bag on hand to get her through some tough TV moments. Her taste in TV tends to rival that of a thirteen-year-old girl, but she’s okay with that. Follow her on Twitter at @SourceMandy.